Souhegan Mourns the Loss of Alumnus Tony Barksdale

Souhegan has shared their tribute from the faculty and staff of Souhegan High School to express their deep sadness for the loss of a beloved student.

19-year-old Anthony Barksdale II passed away early Saturday after being found unconcious at an apartment in Allston. More information can be found on BU Today.

A funeral service and celebration of life have been scheduled for Anthony this weekend.

The following tribute was issued by Souhegan High School today:

The Souhegan High School community suffered a saddening loss last weekend. Tony Barksdale, a 2012 Souhegan graduate and current Boston University student, unexpectedly passed away Saturday, March 2nd while away at school.

Tony was universally admired and respected for his sincere and kind nature.  Social Studies teacher, Jess Tremblay remembers that as a sophomore in her class, “Tony noticed when others were not at their best. He could reach out to them in a jovial way, unafraid to ask someone, ‘Are you okay?’ It’s a cliché, but he truly had a heart of gold.” His Senior Advisor, John Dowd remembers Tony as a spirited and impish advisory member who was “always ready with a joke or a sympathetic ear, whichever the situation called for.  He often affectionately teased his fellow advisees, showing just how well he knew them.” Perhaps most telling about Tony’s character is his selection as student of the year for his senior Film Seminar course. “His contributions to the course were awesome; he is a natural actor, has a creative flair, the ability to work with people and direct them, great writing skills –– combine all those elements in a film project, he was the natural leader of the group,” said Film Seminar teacher Chris Herold.

Tony was in his element whether in Film Seminar, on the basketball court, or on football field. He was an enthusiastic, hard-working member of both the teams, and his commitment and determination was clear to both teachers and coaches. His guidance counselor, Brian Irwin, said that “Tony was goal-oriented and knew what it took to achieve the goal.” Chris echoed Brian in saying, “This was the respect Tony’s peers had for him. In class, Tony would say, ‘Guys, we’ve got to get to work,’ and people got to work.  If Tony said, ‘You’ve crossed the line,’ students respected Tony and listened when he called them out on something. He was fair, and he wanted to get the work done.”

Tony was a vibrant member of the Souhegan community who comfortably navigated his way among diverse groups of students. As Brian said, “He was a friend to everyone.” Indeed, when Chris ran into Tony shooting baskets at the Mont Vernon Village School over the summer, Tony came right over, shook hands and asked him how his summer had been. “When I saw him again in December, home from college for break,” Chris added, “he was so happy with his life, so cheerful, so himself.

Tony made a lasting, positive impression on our school community. We hold dear the memories of a kind, generous person, and we will forever save a backward glance to the years he spent brightening our hallways. We find some small comfort in knowing Souhegan was part of Tony’s life for a short time. We find great comfort in embracing his legacy of commitment to improving oneself and of kindness to others.

Anthony's former football coach, Mike Beliveau, shared his sympathies on Facebook after hearing of his passing:

Dear Tony, We all miss your smile already and have very heavy hearts this morning. Now is a time to truly be the family we always talked about and be there for each other and your family. But mostly be there to remember a great person like you who made others smile, laugh, and appreciate life's great gifts. I will always remember how much you valued working hard in the classroom and on the field and court. I was so proud the day you told me you were going to Boston University. That was ALL YOU. You had worked so hard to put yourself in a position to achieve so much in engineering and life beyond Souhegan HS. We all must honor you by smiling more, being loyal friends, and working as hard as you did to better ourselves everyday. When we do this we will always think of you. You will never be forgotten. Although way too early, heaven has a new angel, one that brought joy and love to the rest of us. Rest in Peace 89.

A friend of Anthony's at Souhegan remembered a good buddy and reliable partner in a comment on Amherst Patch:

I went to souhegan [with] tony. We were partners on almost every advanced engineering project. He was one of the only people that showed up to my senior project presentation. He was one of the greatest people I have ever met. Im truly going to miss this wonderful friend. We will miss you tony